My first Megami Tensei game(And I didn't even know it was a MT game) was Persona 2:EP. I borrowed it from a friend when I was in highschool, and played the first few hours of it before he wanted it back. He never actually played it, and ended up trading it in. I fell in love with it right away. Everything about it was amazing to me. The music, the presentation, the style, the grown up characters. It would be a while until I dug up the information on the game again and order it off ebay. After that I played the DDS series, then Devil Summoner:Raidou Kuzunoha, Persona 3, and Persona 4. And I'm currently working on the second SMT for the SNES. SMT is definitely my favorite RPG series of all time.

I've mentioned before that the only game that rubbed me the wrong way with SMT was the original Persona (which was also the first game I played in the series). Other than that I've enjoyed every other entry in the series, to the extent that it is by far my favorite ongoing series. As far as why, that was already mentioned earlier in terms of SMT being unafraid to go for some topics other series don't want to touch. Often an M rating for an RPG seems arbitrary to me, but not so with good old SMT. I wish more series would take a chance and go for something a bit more dangerous than the status quo, but oh well.

« Last Edit: March 11, 2009, 09:20:03 PM by Ryos »

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I've played nocturne, P3 and 4, some of DDS1 and devil summoner: Raidou vs the soulless army.

Nocturne gets my top spot for being so unique.

Persona games get a close second. I haven't finished it, but I'm playing 4 now and put it above 3. Really, having direct control and not having to deal with the horrid AI is enough on it's own, but I also dig the scooby gang feel to it and the smaller scale of it. I'm not trying to save the world, just catch a killer and less is more in this case. Although I wouldn't be surprised if there's a tweest and I have to save the world at the very least that's not the majority of the game. My only complaint would be the whole party getting social links and getting combat bonus' and persona evolutions for raising them. It's a cop out to use them instead of adding more links and the gameplay perks for raising them makes them feel mandatory.

DDS1 is next. I liked it, but something or other distracted me and it got put on the backlog and stayed there. It's something I really should get back too.

Devil summoner is a distant last. Cool setting and style completely carried it. The actual game was pretty bad. Combat was clunky and I really felt like my cat was holding my hand through the whole thing. But it's one of those rare bad games I can say I liked anyway. Setting won't carry a second game for me though, I'll have to go read that review :P

If it wasn't for Persona 3 I probably wouldn't have heard/cared about SMT. P3 was so different from what I was used to play, dealed with so many themes not usually covered by other RPGs. I was impressed. Did a little search about the series and was surprised to see how many games there were! How come I've never heard of it before? Decided to try Nocturne and I wasn't dissapointed, it was great. I have yet to play DDS1/2, the Raidou Games and the non PS2 games, but eventually I will.

If I'm not mistaken there's more MegaTen than all of FF and DQ combined yet the former (MegaTen) remains fresh and sexy and the latter (FF and DQ) gets massive complaints for being "generic."

Your inclusion of DQ here has been bugging the hell out of me, as if it were unfairly targetted, but I think I'm starting to realize why: DQ's not what people are referring to when they're bitching about JRPGs. Most of the time the jokes are aimed at FF or what FF has produced (overlong cinematics, pretty boy heroes/villains), and personally I find the return to basics with DQ just as refreshing as playing something radically different like MegaTen. Besides, I've seen at least a few others who like DQ and are just as frustrated with modern JRPGs.

Oh, and I'm pretty sure there's more FF games at this point than MegaTen games, especially if you count ports/remakes.

I agree with Eusis, though about demikids, the japanese devil children games were substantially better than the two demikids we got in the states from what I remember. they had like, storylines and stuff.

I thought the DemiKids games had a good story. Nothing like Nocturne or DDS caliber, but better than I expected.

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Nocturne's my favorite. I never actually beat it though. I got up to the last dungeon, and could beat it any time I wanted, but I guess, subconsciously, I just don't want it to end.

DemiKids wasn't bad, but Jin and Akira were very forgettable protagonists. Setsuna and Mirai in Devil Children: Red and Black books were far more interesting. Another aspect that irked me a bit was that demon conversations were often arbitrary and unpredictable.

Not a bad set of RPGs, though, and I liked that each one was its own separate entity. It wasn't like Pokemon Red and Blue which are essentially the same game.

When I finally got a PS2, the Digital Devil Saga series was coming out. Like an idiot, I passed on it even though I remember picking up the DDS1 Limited Edition Box Set and looking at it.

I finally started the series with P3 and have since finished P3, DDS 1 & 2, and P4. I just started Devil Summoner 1 to get ready for DS2 in case there is Cleared Game bonuses. I have Nocturne, Persona: Revelations, and Persona 2 sitting on the shelf, waiting for their turn.

Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne was my first introduction into the series. I've been hooked ever since. Though I have missed out on the Devil Summoner titles. I just found the original series and the Persona franchise to be more appealing. But I haven't played the Devil Summoner games, so I can't really say which is better.

Here's the deal with Devil Summoner. There is a Shin Megami Tensei spoiler here, but I won't mask is since knowing it is relevant.

About halfway through Shin Megami Tensei on the Super Famicom, you try to stop US President Thorman from launching ICBMs and obliterating Tokyo. You're unsuccessful and the second half of SMT takes place in post-apocalyptic Tokyo. SMTII takes place in that future.

Devil Summoner started out as a what if. In the first Devil Summoner (I know it was released on the Sega Saturn), it's presumed you killed Thorman, stopped the ICBMs, and prevented the apocalypse. Devil Summoner 2: Soul Hackers (Saturn, Playstation) is the sequel. Where Shin Megami Tensei has you battling God, Devil Summoner had its main foe be Sid Davis and Soul Hackers' main villains were Sid Davis' Phantom Society. I don't know much about the first Devil Summoner game ('cept that it was often cheap), but Soul Hackers was cool. It was very cyberpunk.

Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army is the start of a new arc that takes place in an alternate version of the 1930s Japan (Taisho era 20), so it too is a "what if" the Taisho era had continued past Taisho 15. King Abaddon is the next installment of the Raidou Kuzunoha arc. (Kuzunoha is definitely a nod to Persona 2: Innocent Sin/Eternal Punishment since it prominently featured the Kuzunoha detective agency as rumor-spreading central.) The Raidou Kuzunoha games are the only Devil Summoner games to be released in the US. Atlus tried to localize the Playstation version Soul Hackers, but were denied by Sony (or so that's how the story goes.)

Gameplay-wise, the Devil Summoner games added demon loyalty to the mix. If you didn't do well by your demons, they'd be disloyal to you and either disobey you in battle, turn on you, etc. In Devil Summoner (Saturn) demons were said to get disloyal pretty quickly. Soul Hackers was much better about that.